Using specially designed submicroscopic capsules in tests on rats, scientists have neutralized the deadly toxin released by the bacterium that causes anthrax. Although antibiotics can kill the microbe, there is currently no means of eliminating the toxin once it’s unleashed in a person’s body.
When Bacillus anthracis infects a mammal, it secretes three proteins that together prove lethal.
Log in
Subscribers, enter your e-mail address for full access to the Science News archives and digital editions.